Yale Collection of Musical Instruments presents
Steven ISSerlIS & r o b e rt l e v I n
in in
Beethoven: Works for Piano and Cello 15 Hillhouse Avenue
New Haven 24 February 2019 3:00 p.m.
Yale Collection of Musical Instruments 15 Hillhouse Avenue New Haven
24 February 2019 3:00 pm
Steven Isserlis, violoncello Robert Levin, fortepiano Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827)
Sonata No. 1 for piano and cello in F Major, Op. 5, No. 1 Adagio sostenuto - Allegro Rondo - Allegro vivace
Sonata No. 5 for piano and cello in D Major, Op. 102, No. 2 Allegro con brio Adagio con molto sentimento d’affetto - Attacca Allegro - Allegro fugato
Ludwig van Beethoven
12 Variations on “Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen” from Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte in F major, Op. 66
Sonata No. 3 for piano and cello in A Major, Op. 69, No.3 Allegro ma non tanto Scherzo - Allegro molto Adagio cantabile - Allegro vivace Fortepiano by R. J. Regier, Freeport, Maine, 2008, designed after instruments by Conrad Graf and Ignaz Bösendorfer This concert is being recorded and streamed live over the internet. Please turn off all cellphones and electronic devices. Photography or recording of this program is strictly prohibited
Program Notes Beethoven: Works for Piano and Cello Violinists and cellists are like cats and dogs – clearly, nature meant them to fight. They fight about all sorts of things, of course; but one perennial bone of contention is the relative value of Beethoven’s violin sonatas and his cello sonatas. There are ten of the former, which is a source of much crowing for violinists; but cellists can boast with justifiable pride that, unlike the violin sonatas, the five cello sonatas span all three of Beethoven’s major creative epochs – the so-called early, middle and late periods. And therefore we cellists would never dream of swapping, even if the exchange were to gain us five extra sonatas. Actually, the very fact that there are only two sonatas from the early period, one from the middle and two from the late, makes the voyage through the cycle all the more extraordinary. In front of our very ears, Beethoven transforms himself from confident virtuoso to supreme master of classical form, and then beyond that to a mystic exploring strange new worlds of unearthly beauty – a wondrous transfiguration. It is hardly surprising that the opening of Beethoven’s first cello sonata, op 5 no 1, feels experimental, as if he is cautiously exploring a new world. In fact, it is a new world – Beethoven was practically inventing the medium as he wrote. This is the first major cello sonata with a written-out keyboard part, almost all earlier examples having been works for solo cello with basso continuo. And quite a keyboard part it is, too – a vehicle for Beethoven the performer. In 1796, Beethoven paid a visit to the Berlin court of Friedrich Wilhelm II, King of Prussia, and composed the opus 5 sonatas in honour of the occasion. The king was himself a keen amateur cellist, for whom Mozart had written the challenging cello parts in his late ‘Prussian’ string quartets; furthermore, Friedrich employed at his court two famous French cellist-brothers, Jean-Pierre and Jean-Louis Duport. It is unclear with which of the brothers Beethoven performed the sonatas – perhaps both (though not simultaneously, one presumes). At any rate, perform the sonatas he did, and seems to have made a great impression on the king. Friedrich, in his enthusiasm, rewarded him with a gold snuff-box ‘suitable for presentation to ambassadors’, as Beethoven boasted to his friends. Back in Vienna, Beethoven performed the sonatas with the famous cellist and composer Bernhard Romberg, whom he had known from his early years in his native Bonn. (The fact that they performed the sonatas together gives the lie, I hope, to the oft-repeated story - which would be too frustrating to be borne, were it true - that Beethoven offered to write a cello concerto for Romberg, but was turned down on the grounds that Romberg would only perform his own music.) Both sonatas were published in 1797, described as ‘Deux Grandes Sonates pour le clavecin ou piano-Forte avec un Violoncelle Obligé Composées et Dediées a sa majesté Frederic Guillaume II Roi de Prusse par Louis van Beethoven’ (with the king’s name in much the largest print). Hard to imagine how they would work on the harpsichord (clavecin); but Beethoven - or his publisher - probably wanted to boost sales.
The F major sonata is almost like a concerto for the two instruments – the piano taking the lion’s share of the difficulties, true, but with enough tricky passages in the cello part to have kept both Duports wide awake. The introduction is followed by a vivacious allegro, its concertante nature emphasised by a cadenza for both instruments (15’11), with a brief reference to the introductory adagio thrown in for good measure. The second movement, a cheerful rondo, is even more extrovert, its most memorable melody being the bucolic third theme (1’48) – one can almost see the beer-glasses swaying and clinking. Towards the end of the work, the music dissolves into a poetic sunset – out of which we are abruptly jolted, and hustled towards a noisy conclusion. It is a vivid reminder of one of Beethoven’s favourite tricks as a performer: having reduced his listeners to tears with the beauty of his improvisations, he would suddenly burst into loud laughter, adding extra offence with a contemptuous insult: ‘You fools!’ Beethoven was not known for the delicacy of his humour… So, having conquered the medium of the cello and piano sonata, it would not have been surprising had Beethoven abandoned it forever; where could he go from there? The answer comes in the last two sonatas which (along with the piano sonata in A, op 101, which, despite the earlier opus number, was written the following year) take us to a world undreamt of before their time – the world of late Beethoven. Increasingly isolated from the society in which he lived, Beethoven had withdrawn into an art that now makes no attempt to please. Whether or not these works became instantly popular was probably of little interest to their creator; this is the purest of music, its new challenges for players as well as listeners reflected in the fact that these are the first of Beethoven’s chamber works to be published in full score (ie with the cello line printed not only separately, but also in the piano part). Written in 1815, the sonatas were first played by the cellist Joseph Linke, with whom Beethoven spent that summer at the holiday residence of the Countess Marie Erdödy, the dedicatee of the sonatas. Linke was the cellist in the premieres of Beethoven’s last three piano trios and his late quartets; he also took part in the only public concert of Schubert’s music held during the composer’s lifetime, as well as performing at Schubert’s memorial concert. If only Linke had written an autobiography - or better still, invented the tape-recorder! So now we come to the last sonata, op 102 no 2. Here, for the first time in the cycle, we have a regular three-movement sonata, with the customary fast-slow-fast sequence. That is where ‘normality’ ends, however. From the audacious opening, with its bold rising octave followed in the next bar by an even bolder rising tenth, we know that this is to be a major statement. A feeling of defiant strength suffuses much of the movement; but a sudden hush, and drop of a semi-tone (at 6’09) transforms the atmosphere, and prepares us for the second movement. This adagio con molto sentimento d’affetto is the only full slow movement in any of the five sonatas; it proves well worth the wait. According to his friend Karl Holz, Beethoven felt that ‘A Requiem ought to be quiet music – it needs no trump of doom; memories of the dead require no tumult.’
Perhaps that was in his mind as he composed this prayer-like chant, with its gently consoling middle section (from 2’24). As at the end of the introduction to the last movement of the C major sonata, we are led to the brink of a far-reaching question that finds no answer; but this time Beethoven gives us for a finale a powerful fugue – the first of the great fugues that were to become a regular feature of his last works. A last surprise awaits us here: the music fades away into the distant key of F-sharp major - and then, as if from afar, we hear a new, unexpected motif (2’37). This has always sounded to me like a quotation; but I needed Robert’s encyclopaedic knowledge to identify it. It transpires that there are at least four passages in works by earlier composers from which Beethoven could have been quoting, all of which contain an almost identical motif; two are by his hero Handel (‘the father of us all’), one by Bach, and one by Mozart. The Handel possibilities are the Alleluja from his Dettingen anthem, HWV265, or the chorus “And with His stripes we are healed’ from Messiah; the Bach contender is the opening of the Fugue in A minor in Book 2 of the Well-Tempered Clavier; and Mozart’s is the ‘Kyrie Eleison’ (‘Lord have mercy’) from his Requiem. Beethoven could have been thinking of one or all (or none, but I find that hard to believe) of these; any of the texts would fit perfectly, as Beethoven nears the end of his extraordinary journey. The conclusion of the fugue is exultant – we can feel the triumph of human nature over all adversity. It is surely Beethoven’s story – and the story of the human spirit as Beethoven saw it. If Beethoven was indeed quoting Handel in the D major fugue, he might have cast his mind back almost 20 years to his first ‘occasional’ piece for piano and cello, his variations on Handel’s ‘See the Conquering Hero Comes’ from the oratorio ‘Judas Maccabaeus’, composed shortly after the opus 5 sonatas. Perhaps the reference to a ‘conquering hero’ was a tribute to Friedrich Wilhelm; at any rate, one can feel Beethoven’s characteristic strength, as well as his humour, even in this comparatively slight work. He must have enjoyed writing and playing this set of variations, for it was quickly followed by another, this time based on Papageno’s aria from ‘the Magic Flute’ in which he expresses his longing for a girlfriend or (failing that!) a wife. Beethoven treats the initial statement of the theme quite freely; even the thought of the great Mozart (who had died only a few years earlier) could not intimidate the young firebrand. As in the Handel set, the first variation is for piano solo; and as in the earlier piece, Beethoven makes amends to the cellist by writing one hideously difficult variation for cello (variation 7 in the Handel, no 2 in the Mozart). The third set, on Pamina and Papageno’s duet in praise of love, also from the Magic Flute, was written in 1801; the variations seem to depict various aspects of romance - from excited gossip to lofty ardour. Curiously, the first edition fails even to mention the cello on its title-page; pianistic chauvinism.
The third sonata, in A major op 69, inhabits a completely different world. Dedicated to another cello-playing aristocratic patron of Beethoven’s, Baron von Gleichenstein (who seems to have acted as both financial supporter and match-maker to Beethoven, and whose descendants are today successful wine-makers), the sonata was completed in 1808, making it a close contemporary of the two piano trios op 70 and the 5th and 6th symphonies. This work, today perhaps the most popular of all cello sonatas, is the creation of a grand master at the very height of his powers. By this time, Beethoven, plagued by increasing deafness, had given up his life as a virtuoso; he was now concentrating almost solely on composition. The two opus 5 sonatas are really (as advertised) sonatas for piano with cello obbligato, wonderful though the cello parts are; but for his third effort in the genre, Beethoven set himself the challenge of writing a fully equal duo sonata, all the material being equally adaptable for either instrument. The result is a triumph in every way - it is, in fact, the perfect classical sonata. Although dispensing with the self-contained introduction which had opened both the earlier sonatas, Beethoven incorporates a similar sense of exploration into the first subject of this work. The cello, as if to establish its new equality, begins alone, posing a graceful question; this is taken up by the piano, and then repeated with the voices reversed. The concluding flourishes for both instruments give the impression of an unfinished sentence; we have to wait until the end of the movement (11’50) for its completion. There is certainly drama aplenty here, particularly in the central development section (from 6’30); but overall the abiding impression of this Allegro, ma non tanto is one of lofty serenity and lyricism. The second movement, a craggy scherzo, is cast in a form Beethoven also used in the scherzi of his sixth and seventh symphonies, as well as in the string quartet op 95: we hear the scherzo section three times, the middle ‘trio’ section twice. Within this substantial structure, Beethoven unsettles our perceptions with his constant use of syncopations, both in small-scale terms (the main theme of the scherzo starts on the last beat of the bar), and on a larger scale (the melody of the trio starts on the second bar of a 4-bar phrase). (A brief note on our interpretation here: Beethoven indicates a change of fingering for the pianist within the tied notes of the scherzo’s main theme. It is difficult, but by no means impossible, to re-sound these notes gently with a change of finger on a heavy modern piano; on a fortepiano, however, it is very natural – and Beethoven demands it again in the both the Hammerklavier sonata and the piano sonata in Ab, op 110. So there seems little doubt that he meant the note to sound twice despite the tie, especially since his student Carl Czerny in his performing notes to the cello sonatas, tells us that ‘the ties in the right hand and the fingering placed over them, here signify something wholly peculiar. Thus the second note is repeated in anaudible manner with the 3rd finger’. But whether the cello should respond in kind or not is an open question. There is no indication that it should do so – but I find it impossible
not to react to the piano articulation; and therefore, with Robert’s full concurrence, I do so. We shall have to wait till the next life to find out whether we were right or not; actually, I look forward to asking the composer about a few such points.) The adagio cantabile that ensues appears to promise a full slow movement, in E major; but within 14 bars, Beethoven apparently changes his mind, taking us back to A major (1’00), and thence, without much further ado, into the gloriously sunny Allegro vivace. Lyricism, virtuosity and wit combine here to produce a dazzling celebration. A particularly magical moment occurs in the final coda, where Beethoven introduces a melting passage (7’54) which, although derived from earlier material, sounds so unexpected and fresh that we feel as if he has given us a new theme as a parting gift. ~Notes by Steven Isserlis, from the CD recording with Robert Levin of Beethoven’s Cello Sonatas (Hyperion 2014)
About the Performers Acclaimed worldwide for his profound musicianship and technical mastery, British cellist Steven Isserlis enjoys a uniquely varied career as a soloist, chamber musician, educator, author and broadcaster. He appears with the world’s leading orchestras and conductors, including the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, Zurich Tonhalle and Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestras; and gives recitals every season in major musical centres. As a chamber musician, he has curated concert series for many prestigious venues, including the Wigmore Hall, New York’s 92nd St Y and the Salzburg Festival. Unusually, he also directs chamber orchestras from the cello in classical programmes. He has a strong interest in historical performance, working with many periodinstrument orchestras and giving recitals with harpsichord and fortepiano. He is also a keen exponent of contemporary music and has premiered many new works, including John Tavener’s The Protecting Veil, Thomas Adès’s Lieux retrouvés, and Gyorgy Kurtag’s ‘For Steven’. Steven’s award-winning discography includes Bach’s Cello Suites for Hyperion (Gramophone’s Instrumental Album of the Year); Beethoven’s complete works for cello and piano with Robert Levin; and the Elgar and Walton concertos with the Philharmonia Orchestra/Paavo Jarvi. His latest recordings include the Brahms Double Concerto with Joshua Bell and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, and – as director and soloist – concertos by Haydn and CPE Bach, with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, which was shortlisted for a Grammy Award.
A special First World War-inspired disc with Connie Shih was also released in 2017, including pieces performed on a travel cello which was played in the trenches. Since 1997, Steven Isserlis has been Artistic Director of the International Musicians Seminar at Prussia Cove, Cornwall. He also enjoys playing for children, and has created three musical stories, with the composer Anne Dudley. His two books for children, published by Faber’s, have been translated into many languages; and his latest book, a commentary on Schumann’s famous Advice for Young Musicians, has recently been published, also by Faber’s. The recipient of many awards, Steven Isserlis’s honours include a CBE in recognition of his services to music, the Schumann Prize of the City of Zwickau, and the Piatigorsky Prize in the USA. In 2017, he was awarded the Glashütte Original Music Festival Award, the Wigmore Hall Gold Medal, and the Walter Willson Cobbett Medal for Services to Chamber Music. He gives most of his concerts on the Marquis de Corberon (Nelsova) Stradivarius of 1726, kindly lent to him by the Royal Academy of Music. Pianist and conductor Robert Levin has performed throughout the United States, Europe, Australia and Asia. His solo engagements include the orchestras of Atlanta, Berlin, Birmingham, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Los Angeles, Montreal, Utah and Vienna on the Steinway with such conductors as Semyon Bychkov, James Conlon, Bernard Haitink, Sir Neville Marriner, Seiji Ozawa, Sir Simon Rattle and Esa-Pekka Salonen. On period pianos he has appeared with the Academy of Ancient Music, English Baroque Soloists, Handel & Haydn Society, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and the Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique, with Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Christopher Hogwood, Sir Charles Mackerras, Nicholas McGegan, and Sir Roger Norrington. Renowned for his improvised embellishments and cadenzas in Classical period repertoire, Robert Levin has made recordings for DG Archiv, CRI, Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, ECM, New York Philomusica, Nonesuch, Philips and SONY Classical. These include a Mozart concerto cycle for Decca; a Beethoven concerto cycle for DG Archiv (including the world premiere recording of Beethoven’s arrangement of the Fourth Concerto for piano and string quintet); and the complete Bach harpsichord concertos with Helmuth Rilling, as well as the six English Suites (on piano) and both books of the Well-Tempered Clavier (on five keyboard instruments) as part of Hänssler’s 172-CD Edition Bachakademie. ECM will be releasing his traversal of the Mozart piano sonatas on Mozart’s piano. He is a regular partner of cellist Steven Isserlis, with whom he recorded the complete piano and cello music of Beeethoven, and
pianist Ya-Fei Chuang, with whom he appears in recital and with orchestra. Earlier this year he toured Europe and the United States with violinist Hilary Hahn. A passionate advocate of new music, Robert Levin has commissioned and premiered a large number of works. He has recorded the complete piano music of Dutilleux for ECM and joined pianist Ursula Oppens in a CD of Bernard Rands’ piano music for Bridge. A renowned chamber musician, his completions of Mozart fragments are published by Bärenreiter, Breitkopf & Härtel, Carus, Peters, and Wiener Urtext Edition, and recorded and performed throughout the world. This concert is made possible by the generous support of the Associate Members of the Collection.
upcoming performances in The 2018-2019 season March 31
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April 8
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The seBasTians “Everywhere sharp-edged and engaging.� --The New York Times
April 28
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a & a harpsichord duo Danse Macabre: a Program of Madness and Love, Life and Death
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cover image Caspar David Friedreich Two Men Contemplating the Moon German, 1825-30 Oil on canvas The Metropolitan Museum of Art Acc. No. 2000.51